A typical incandescent light bulb includes a sealed, light transmissive lamp envelope which encloses a filament. The filament has electrical leads which extend through a lamp stem to a base portion. The base is typically an aluminum or brass screw shell with a glass insulator and a center contact at the bottom.
An incandescent light bulb can be controlled by one of several types of electronic modules. These modules, each of which is designed for a specific purpose, have circuitry to control the light output of the lamp, causing the lamp to flash, to automatically dim over a period of time, to dim in steps, or to perform some other desired function. Suitable electronic modules are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,634, issued Jun. 30, 1992 to Johnson and U.S. Pat. No. 5,030,890, issued Jul. 9, 1991 to Johnson. U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,634 also discloses an incandescent lamp with integrated control circuitry.
It is desirable to provide an incandescent lamp assembly wherein an electronic module is mounted within the lamp base so that the lamp assembly can be installed in a conventional lamp socket. The lamp assembly must be low in cost, easy to manufacture and highly reliable.
It is a general object of the present invention to provide a lamp assembly with an integrated electronic module.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a lamp having an electronic module mounted in the base so that the lamp can be installed and operated in a conventional lamp socket.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a lamp with an electronics module which is simple in construction and easy to use.